Cavs' Search On Back Burner

Notebook

The search for Virginia's next head basketball coach is on hold, with Athletic Director Jim Copeland waiting for several potential candidates to complete their seasons at other schools.

Copeland said he has interviewed seven coaches, including Virginia assistants Jeff Jones and Craig Littlepage. He plans to interview three or four more, but has a group of three or four leading candidates already in mind.

Copeland refuses to discuss names, but among those he has contacted are Penn State's Bruce Parkhill and Stanford's Mike Montgomery, both of whom are coaching in the NIT. Parkhill is declining comment, while Montgomery downplayed his involvement.

"What you're hearing is a lot of media scuttlebutt," he said. "Everybody is trying to make up a scenario."

When asked about his interview, Montgomery said, "I guess that depends on what you want to call an interview. I had a conversation with (Copeland) one time."

Montgomery interviewed at Maryland last year for the vacancy that went to Gary Williams.

Copeland also has talked to Richmond's Dick Tarrant and UNC Charlotte's Jeff Mullins, both of whom have said they are no longer interested.

Copeland estimated that his decision is at least two weeks away because some coaches refuse to be interviewed during the season. Xavier's Pete Gillen is one such coach. He's a former assistant at Virginia Military Institute, Notre Dame and Villanova and has been mentioned as a possible candidate.

"I had originally hoped to settle on a coach before the end of the regular season and name him after the season," Copeland said. "But two things happened. Terry (Holland) signed two kids in the fall, which took pressure off spring recruiting. And although I've talked to a number of coaches, more than I thought possible, I still want to see about some others."

* SCHEDULE CHANGE

Holland would like to see the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament played earlier. With the championship game on Sunday, the particpants have little time to prepare for NCAA tournament games on Thursday or Friday. "It's not like every other conference in the country is (playing that Sunday)," Holland said. "It's pretty dumb of us as a conference."

* RECRUITING

Christian Ast, a 6-foot-8 forward from High Point High School in Beltsville, Md., has committed to Duke and plans to sign a letter of intent in April. Ast, originally from West Germany and a friend of North Carolina freshman Henrik Rodl, also considered Virginia. The Cavaliers also are courting 6-9 center Butch Morris of San Jacinto Junior College in Pasadena, Texas. Morris, a Richmond native, also is considering Virginia Commonwealth, James Madison, Nevada-Las Vegas and Arkansas.

* FIELD DEBATE

Georgia Tech Coach Bobby Cremins wants the NCAA to expand its basketball tournament field by 8-12 teams. "There are a lot of great teams with 19-20 wins not making the tournament," he said. "I feel for those coaches. We're putting too much pressure on a coach. He might feel that pressure and go out and do something in recruiting he'll regret." North Carolina's Dean Smith: "If you do that, what do you do about the next 8-12 who didn't make the tournament?" Smith is right. The conference tournaments are, in essence, opening rounds of the NCAA tournament. Keep the field at 64 - it's locked at that number through the 1990s - and distribute tournament revenue more equitably. That will eliminate some pressure.

* PRIORITIES

Penn State Athletic Director Jim Tarman had a choice: The Nittany Lions could host a first-round NIT game or first-round NCAA women's game. He chose the men. Hence, Penn State plays Marquette tonight in the NIT, while the seventh-seeded women must play at No. 10 Florida State. Tarman said the men's game would draw more fans and be televised by ESPN. Several women's groups are planning to protest outside the men's game.